Review of The Descendants (2011) by Brett C — 15 Oct 2013

Alexander Payne's The Descendants is a drama film, with a splash of comedy, that tells the tale of this man who is under stress and pressure from certain aspects of his life and he is finding a way to get through it. This film is very well done and is very deserving of it's accolades, in it's screenplay in particular.

The Descendants is written by Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash. This is both Faxon and Rash's first film. This film is very well written with a plot that doesn't lose too much focus on the main issues, which is sometimes found with comedic drama films like this, and the writers have written great dialogue that is believable and not too overly sentimental. The films maintains it's comedic tones through the dialogue from both Clooney, Woodley, and Krause. There are moments where the film feels heartbreaking but there are also times where you end up chuckling at a line for at least a minute as it either came out of nowhere or it just felt so real that it's funny. If a film is able to make me laugh and feel saddened, that is something I am very inclined to revisit in the future.

Alexander Payne directed this film and I came into this with no expectations as this is my first experience with the director. There are a few films from Payne's catalogue that I definitely want to see. Payne's handling with this film is definitely excellent. The way he handles this story, which if handled by a different director can be emotional and overly depressing, is very effective. Payne decided to keep the film's tone positive and at times comedic. This decision helps keep the film light and and have the audience come out of it feeling good and satisfied. The film's positive tone is due to the photography, dialogue and the score of the film.

The film's photography was handled by Phedon Papamichael, who has worked with Payne before in his previous film, Sideways. Papamichael was also the DP of other films that I have seen as well, The Ides of March and 3:10 To Yuma. Both films has a gritty or dark feel to it's photography, so seeing his work here in The Descendants was shocking. His photography here is beautiful and bright. This intention definitely works with the direction that Payne was going for. There are multiple moments where Hawaii looks amazing. Papamichael definitely show the beauty that Hawaii offers and is definitely ironic when the voice over at the start of the film comes in. He definitely shows that Hawaii is paradise, regardless of what Matt King says. The intimate moments, conversations between characters, are mainly composed of close shots with focus on their emotions and reactions which is critical in showing the connection of each character to the topic that is being discussed, whether it's about Elizabeth or the property in Hawaii.

The Descendants is soundtrack driven rather than score driven. This would have been a great opportunity to create a beautiful score to drive the film but the song choices for this film does it's job well. The songs doesn't feel like a soundtrack that stands out but rather it feels appropriate for the setting and adds on to the lightness that Payne is trying to create. The soundtrack isn't the greatest aspect of the film but it does add to what makes this film great.

In my first viewing, I used to think it was a Clooney driven performance but in my second viewing, I started to see that it is both a Shailene Woodley and George Clooney driven film. They play off with each other well and it's definitely entertaining to watch. Clooney was already someone I expected a lot from but it was Woodley who definitely surprised and made me a fan of her acting. I'm glad to see a daughter in a film that shows a lot of her personality. Woodley shows the bad side of her, the edgy side of her, and the emotional and vulnerable side of her. The other supporting cast were great, in particular Judy Greer, Beau Bridges and Robert Forster.

The Descendants is a film that kept me attracted to it after my first experience with the film due to it's striking photography and fantastic acting between Clooney and Woodley. It may grow on me further during subsequent viewings and the film has the potential to become a much more appreciated film in the future.